How old should a child be before they can stop using a child seat.
My daughter is 6 yo and about 50 lbs. Should she still be in a car seat or is it time to let her just use a shoulder belt?
Do you mean a booster seat? My 6 year old uses a booster seat.
the NHTSA says booster seat until 8–
http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/injury/childps/booster_seat/National_Strategy/executive_summary.htm
Oh, here’s a better link–
http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/injury/childps/booster_seat/brochure/inside.html
scroll down to the bottom of the “when do you use a booster seat” box.
http://www.safetycops.com/belts.htm
http://insurance.yahoo.com/a/kids.in.html
I know, she’s 6 and she finds it humiliating to use a booster seat, been there, done that, my youngest had the same problem. You’ll just have to tough it out for her sake.
It may be legal where you are for a six-year-old to use only an adult seatbelt. But she’s still safer in a booster seat. Ideally, a child would be in a booster seat until she could sit with her bottom at the back of the seat, her knees bent at the edge of the seat (kids slouch if their knees don’t go that far), and the shoulder belt across her shoulder and not her neck. Unfortunately that’s not always possible, either because the child is too heavy for a booster or because he’s old enough that it’s way too embarrassing.
My tall nine-year-old son says he’s still more comfortable in his booster seat, for what it’s worth. The law here says kids can use the belt alone from the age of 8, but several of his classmates still use boosters, too.
Thanks for the info!
Duck Duck Goose hit it on the head, she’s complaining that she’s too old now for a baby seat. But I think this weekend we’ll go shopping for a BIG girl (booster) seat!
Is there an age limit there too? If my mom had followed those requirements I would have been in a booster seat until I was 13.
My sister would almost still be in a booster seat. She’s 16, 4’11 and 90 lbs.